I went for a facial at Massage Envy last week, and they used the Murad Anti-Aging Acne line on me. The aesthetician recommended this to me for my 40+ clog/breakout prone skin that was very clogged and irritated/angry from trying to do extractions myself to get rid of the clogs. I have to admit I was skeptical, as a die hard benzoyl peroxide user for 20+ years. It has been the only thing to keep my breakouts to a minimum. (Never actually getting rid of them.) However, in the past year my skin has been changing, becoming slightly drier with still an oily t-zone that was dehydrated. I could have a clogged pore that I extracted that would take months to heal and even then would be left with a bump and a purple mark. I also could never find a moisturizer that would not clog my pores and make an even bigger mess out of my skin. So, I saw the price of this at $56 and almost passed it up. I also bought the anti-aging time release cleanser at over $30. I figured I would see how they worked before buying the rest of the line. Now, I'm no stranger to spending $$ on skincare. Believe me, I've tried everything. Proactive, Murad (once in my early 30's), Ole Henrickson, Makeup artist's choice, Yves Rocher, Dr. Perricone, etc. I'm so glad I gave this a try. I realize now my mistake in the past with Murad was not using the other items from the line. I've been experimenting with samples of different parts of the line, it's very customizable now to meet my exact needs, whereas ten years ago I only tried the Acne line and it was too drying. I have been using the Anti-aging Acne Cleanser, the Clarifying toner, the Acne and Wrinkle Reducer at night, the Exfoliating Acne Treatment Gel in the AM, and still playing around with different hydrators from the line both morning and night. So far I like the Pore and Line Minimizing Hydrator the best. I cannot believe how much my skin has changed for the better in less than 2 weeks. Bumps that were clogged pores under the surface, that I have been trying to extract for months are GONE. Granted, the aesthetician told me to stop picking, and for the most part I have. I still tend to go for the ones that are right there on the surface, but overall they come out easily and with no damage to the surrounding skin/tissue. Huge change from before! My skin looks about 5-10 years younger, which I truly was not expecting. I was just hoping to get rid of the pimples/clogs. My skin is plump and hydrated, What???? Also something I was not familiar with as the BP was drying me out horribly. The other bonus? My clothes/sheets/pillowcases/towels are not bleached anymore! I can finally, at age 41, buy some colored sheets. Now for the caviat. This stuff ain't cheap. I've scoured ebay and other sites for deals and have gotten lucky, but I don't care...it's worth it to have my skin clearing up at such an astounding rate. I went through about a week of uncertainty after my facial, a little purging, slight redness and VERY mild peeling just around my nose. The aesthetician told me to give myself a week of not using BP. I didn't think I could do it. But wow, things are changing. I really hope it continues and will update my review if not. I'm so impressed though, and I am so glad I found this anti-aging acne line. I was someone who would go for the highest percentage of Salicylic Acid/Glycolic Acid/Retinol/whatever and think that's what was needed to make a difference. This changed my mind. I think the high percentage was what was making my skin so thin and clog prone, just perpetuating the cycle of breakout-pick-never heal process. If you have the money to try this line, go to the Murad website and check it out, read reviews, and use their online help to customize a routine. Their service is excellent even if you don't buy from them. I also think the ingredients speak to why this line is expensive. Botanical extracts that work along with proven anti-aging ingredients in the right combination don't come cheap. Read the details on each product to find out what action the ingredients have. I think the negative reviews on MUA may be due to a) not using the other items from the line that compliment each other, and b) not giving it a chance to work. For me, I was a mess and was expecting it to take at least 1-2months to straighten out my skin. 2 Weeks was nothing less than miraculous. I'm sold.

Bought this while I was living in San Francisco. The dry climate caused fine lines to surface. At the time I was 22. This did nothing to reduce my fine lines. Wasn't moisturizing or effective at all. I'm not sure it did anything. If it can't reduce a 22 year old's fine lines (very fine), I'm not sure it would be effective for anything more extreme. I switched back to Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Daily Face Peel and Lush bar serums and that worked better to take away the fine lines. Now using Dermalogica AgeSmart line and completely fine line free, at almost 25 :)

Horrible... tried to use this twice - 3 months separating each use (gave it a one week timeframe each time I tried, with the results I was scared to use more than one week) and same nightmare end result each time. I'm 32 and my skin is still pretty oily - I use 2-3 of those blue sheets a day for the oil, and I didn't have any real wrinkles yet, just a deepening of smile lines over the past year - which aren't a big deal since I know teenagers who have those deeper than mine.

Purchased at the recommendation of the sales person at the Edge / Dillards along with my Clarisonic Mia.

I purchased the "kit" containing cleanser, treatment, spot treatment, & day lotion... 1st time using last Fall, and then again two weeks ago (when I ran out of other products).

I had the same results both times - my skin became raw, super sensitive, and eventually cracked & peeled all over. The peeling led to congested pores and the biggest cystic type zit I've had since the last time I used this product. I also believe it actually CAUSED two tiny fine line wrinkles to come up on my upper lip - they came up after my skin in that area cracked & peeled, I just hope they will fade over time.

My skin is finally recovering after a weekend of slathering on moisturizer, exfoliating 2-3 times a day, using my Tanda ZAP & wearing no makeup. I went back to Philosophy Purity Made Simple this week when it arrived, and finally finally getting back to "normal".

Very rich and moisturizing formula, but too much if ur very acne prone. 0.5 is not strong enough to be an effective acne treatment! Im oily skinned with mild to moderate acne, but 31 with fine lines developing so I figured id get an acne and anti aging treatment in one. Wrong, after 2 weeks my pores were so clogged and congested I was having to wring the gunk out. This is for aging women with normal to dry skin ONLY and who have only very mild acne. NOT FOR OILY SKINNED LADIES!

This was a pretty meh product in terms of results. My skin was fine while I used it, but I didn't notice any major improvement in acne *or* wrinkles. Also, .5% salicylic acid is really low. Texture and application were nice, though. Not buying again.

I've been using this product for about a year now and it has really cleared my skin. I'm not sure about the wrinkle reducing part, but it hasn't caused me to get any additional wrinkles which is great. I apply acne.org AHA moisturizer afterwards and my skin looks great!

The entire skin care industry is predicated on two things: a) we can't go back in time; and b) they're counting on us not to realize that correlation does not necessarily mean causation. How many times have I wished, okay, now let's rewind the clock and see what happens to my skin when I use another product. And without extensive rigorous testing, it's not possible to say for sure that using a specific product caused your skin to behave in a particular way.

As the cruel reality of perimenopause seems to involve simultaneous acne and wrinkles, at least on me, I welcome a product that handles both problems. I began using the product in the fall, a time when I'm not exposing myself to much sun anyway, but I am seeing a small improvement in line smoothing on my face. However, the effect on my acne (oh, how difficult it was to type that phrase) was temporary. When I first used it, it seemed to be effective, but lately (February/March 2011) it seems helpless against major breakouts in the T-zone. I use one pump spread over the whole face in the morning, before makeup. I don't use it at night, and still treat myself to my beloved philosophy Microdelivery Peel on Saturday nights. If this continues, I may have to downgrade this to "would not purchase again."